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Walking Distance Guide

= 1 mile (1.6 km)

= 0.5 mile (0.8 km)

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Since before Starbucks spilled across the map from its headquarters in the Pacific Northwest, Portland’s coffee culture has kept locals caffeinated with a mix of independent roasters and small cafés, each brewing up espressos, Americanos and lattes with beans from around the world. And if you know where to go, you can get a mugful of its rich history for yourself.

Start with a step back in time at Jim & Patty’s Coffee, a friendly neighborhood haunt where the owners man the till and serve up hot drinks like their spicy Habanero Mocha and their Peanut Butter Fudge Mocha. You may hear people refer to this shop as “Coffee People,” which was the name of Jim and Patty’s beloved chain, which kept Portland caffeinated from 1983-1998 (and lived on under different ownership until mid-2016).

Picking up Coffee People’s torch, Stumptown Coffee Roasters kept Portland on the coffee map when owner Duane Sorenson started sourcing, roasting and delivering his own beans from his Southeast Division coffeehouse. With five Portland locations (and many other shops serving up his roasts), their beloved beans have brought living wages to coffee farmers worldwide through a financially transparent supply chain. While that sounds good, the the end product tastes even better — whether it’s a bottled cold brew, espresso, or made with a Chemex, their Costa Rican, Ethiopian, and Indonesian blends each have distinct tastes and can be purchased by the bag to make at home.

Since pouring their first cup in 2005, Ristretto Roasters has also brewed signature smooth espressos and lattes in its Northwest and Mississippi locations, medium-roasting their beans at an eastside facility. Coava Coffee Roasters owner Michael Higgins started making his artisanal brews in his garage in 2008, but now the company’s Southeast Portland brew bar, located adjacent to their roastery, offers coffee flights, so drinkers can taste the difference in their cups. Since 2009, Heart Roasters has been perfecting the ideal coffee one cup at a time, using an aeropress, precise timing and exact measurements, and they’ll show you how seven days a week at their eastside coffee lab.

If you miss out on these roasters, their brews are also available at coffeehouses around town. Barista, with gorgeous shops perfect for people watching in the Pearl District, Alberta Street and downtown, pours masterfully made espressos from a variety of roasters. Case Study Coffee, meanwhile, began as an espresso catering company, but has since evolved into a pair of locations (downtown and on East Burnside) where small-batch roasted beans and house-made syrups make cups worth savoring.

In 1999, Stumptown Coffee took Portland caffeine lovers by the storm. What started as a single roastery on Southeast Division Street quickly expanded to the rest of Portland and, more recently, New York…

In 1999, Stumptown Coffee took Portland caffeine lovers by the storm. What started as a single roastery on Southeast Division Street quickly expanded to the rest of Portland and, more recently, New York…

In 1999, Stumptown Coffee took Portland caffeine lovers by the storm. What started as a single roastery at this location on Southeast Division Street quickly expanded to the rest of Portland and, more…

In 1999, Stumptown Coffee took Portland caffeine lovers by the storm. What started as a single roastery on Southeast Division Street quickly expanded to the rest of Portland and, more recently, New York…

Ristretto Roasters produces handcrafted coffees roasted in small batches. All coffees are sourced by owner/roaster Din Johnson, and the shop specializes in a medium roast, taking each coffee varietal to its peak of…

Ristretto Roasters produces handcrafted coffees roasted in small batches. All coffees are sourced by owner/roaster Din Johnson, and the shop specializes in a medium roast, taking each coffee varietal to its peak of…

Coava Coffee began in a garage in North Portland, but their award-winning single-origin coffees couldn’t be confined; today, they roast all their beans in this Central Eastside Industrial District roastery and adjacent…

Coava Coffee began in a garage in North Portland, but their award-winning single-origin coffees couldn’t be confined; today, they roast all their beans in their Central Eastside Industrial District roastery, which is…

Heart’s original location, opened in 2009, is nestled into Portland’s Eastside. This is a destination for the specialty coffee community, where customers can watch small batches being roasted every Sunday. Heart aims…